My invention relates to a device and system to allow for the preparation of a pressurized container of paint formulation of a desired color and gloss at the point of retail sale to the ultimate end user. Specifically, my invention relates to a system for injecting a paint composition into pressurized containers, and, more particularly, to an improved filling system for filling aerosol cans that uses a safety release device that prevents over charging, damage to the pressurized container and injury to the user.
One of the most significant developments in the field of paints and other protective coatings is the introduction and development of aerosolized coatings, most commonly referred to as “spray paint.” Retail stores have shelf upon shelf of these pre-filled pressurized containers of complete paint and coatings formulations, in every imaginable color and gloss that are “ready to use”. These complete, pre-packaged spray paint containers provide the customer with a convenient means to purchase small quantities of paint in a readily useable spray container for easy application. Unfortunately, in situations where the end user has a particular color in mind or wants to match a particular existing color, the current art of spray paint forces the end user to select a paint color that in most cases is not the exact color that the user desires. This is because there is no convenient means to allow a consumer to select a color and have that exact color made at the point of purchase. Instead, the user must search a myriad of brands of spray paint in the hope of finding a color that at least comes close to the desired color. Often times, this causes the end user to travel from store to store in search of such a match. Another drawback of the conventional spray paint product is that the inability to prepare a final paint color at the point of sale directly affects the retailer. Because conventional spray paint is only available from the manufacturer in pre-selected and predetermined colors and gloss, the retailer is forced to stock and carry inventory for a large number of cans to accommodate a large number of colors and gloss finishes. This further requires the use of an inordinate amount of shelf space in the store, thus limiting the amount of other products that can be displayed.
A convenient solution to the above mentioned problems would be to allow the retail outlet at the point of sale to formulate the final color of the spray paint based on the end user's selections of color and gloss at the moment of sale. In this way only a very limited number of spray containers containing either a clear or neutral base paint formulation need to be stocked and shelved by the retailer. The end user can then select a final paint formulation that exactly matches his or her needs. Of course, once the final color is selected, there exists the problem of injecting the final paint formulation into the can. In a manufacturing setting large, non-portable paint filling machines are routinely used to inject paint formulations into pre-pressurized containers. However, at the retail level, such machines are non-existent or very rare. Existing paint filling machines are presently available as large bench mounted machines that are pneumatically operated to inject paint and the like into pre-charged aerosol cans. Some examples of these machines are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,302,163 and 6,138,720 and in the references cited in those two patents. Such machines commonly include a large manually operated lever that is connected to a piston assembly that pneumatically injects a paint formulation from a reservoir through the aerosol valve and into the can. One drawback of this existing machine is the ease to which an untrained operator can over-pressure (or over charge) the container causing a potentially dangerous situation if the can were to rupture. Likewise, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,740,841; 5,647,408, Des. 361,581; 4,938,260, and 5,535,790; each describe various filing machine designs that can inject a complete “custom” paint formulation into a pressurized can. Despite the improvements the art has seen in the design of paint filling machines, the art has not concerned itself with size or portability, but instead has been directed towards automated filling devices and the prevention of emissions of volatile organic compounds or VOC's to satisfy government regulations.
Although my earlier issued U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,705,359 and 6,135,165 describe a pressurized container containing certain paint additives which is eventually filled with a final water-borne paint composition of a selected color at the point of sale, those patents do not describe in detail any particular type of paint filling system that can be easily used at the point of sale location. My invention on the other hand provides a new and improved portable and compact aerosol can filling apparatus that includes a safety release device to prevent over charging the container, which overcomes the above referenced drawbacks of the prior art.